Past Episodes

Hey Big Spender

Summary

When it comes to offering a helping hand to those in need Australians are among the most generous in the world, but why are our wealthy are among the most reluctant when it comes to giving money?

Compass explores philanthropy in Australia by following four wealthy business people who do give by donating generously to medical research, health and education. Among them is Greg Poche who has donated a staggering $105 million. All are passionate about giving, and want philanthropy to feature more prominently on our national agenda. So, what motivates them to give when so many on our Rich List do not?

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Geraldine Doogue, NarrationWhen it comes to pitching in for charity..the average Aussie is among the most generous in the world.

Charity workerThank you have a nice day.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationOut of 153 countries we’re near the top of the list in giving time..and money.

But when it comes to the top end of town – it’s a different story: our wealthy are among the most reluctant givers in the world.

Daniel Petre, Businessman & philanthropistWe have a nation of scrooges, o-of people who do not, at the high end, who do not feel it’s their responsibility to help out.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationAustralia is the lucky country. Some of us are much luckier than others: it’s estimated as many as 15,000 Australians, have a net worth of over twenty million dollars.

Daniel Petrie is one of them. But unlike most of his rich colleagues, this father of three gives generously to medical research, health and education.

Daniel Petre, Businessman & philanthropistCarolyn and I founded the Petre Foundation back in 2001. Ah we’ve allocated more than 35 percent of our net wealth to philanthropy, which puts us- I don’t like trying to be a hero on it, so I-it bothers me a little bit.

But I think in the Australian context we would be probably one of the most philanthropic families in the country. Now I don’t say that in any way to have some brass band, because I’m a little sad, quite honestly, because there are people who’ve got a lot more than us who could give a lot more than that.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationDaniel, the son of Romanian war refuges, made his millions from technology.

While working for bill gates at Microsoft he came up with a marketing strategy that rocketed their “office” software to world brand leader - earning the company billions.

Bill GatesIf you wanna get to the internet you can do so thru Microsoft network

Daniel Petre Working for Bill Gates was an extraordinary experience. And one of the things that he said on a plane flight from ah Seattle to New York once, we were talking about philanthropy, and he said. That it’s your responsibility to give to the community within which you’ve earned your money, not your choice.

So that if you’re successful, it’s not a choice you make, it’s a responsibility. You have to do it. And I thought that made so much sense to me

Daniel Petre, Four Corners 1995We’re very successful with windows platform I guess 90% of PC’s run it.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationThrough Microsoft Daniel was propelled into the ranks of the super wealthy. But then a bombshell: his sister, his only sibling, was killed in a car crash. After the grief subsided he took stock of his life.

Daniel Petre And it made me think about well, what would we put on my tombstone if I dropped off the twig? And what it occurred to me is that pretty much it would say ah, you know, “Vice President of Microsoft, hopefully soon to be Senior Vice President of Microsoft! “ And that was pretty much it. And I thought at that moment that wasn’t enough, that I wanted to say that I was a a really good father, I was a good partner, I was a a good and contributing member of the community.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationDaniel was true to his vision: in 2000 he returned to Australia, spent more time with his family and, working mostly 9 to 5, kept kicking business goals.

Daniel PetreThe internet is a cavalcade of opportunities of for content and content services.. .

Daniel PetreYou have to really understand, what this new medium is all about and how important it is.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationDaniel’s right at home with the wealthy movers and shakers ..That is, until he asks them why they don’t fulfil what he sees as their philanthropic duty.

Daniel PetreNo, I’m not very popular. I don’t get invited to many dinner parties with wealthy people, because when wealthy people are asked this question about “why don’t they give” they’ll say things like, you know, “I’m gonna think- g-get to it, I’m busy doing the work, or you know I pay my taxes and the taxes should-“ You know, those- these are the excuses. And when I see them I go well firstly most of you don’t pay your full taxes, you’ve all got structured tax havens, you know. so that’s bullshit.

Um you say that it’s up to the government. Well the government can’t do everything, you know. So I’ll sort of pick off the lame, irrational excuses, and then it becomes this sort of you’re just, you know, a heretic, and you know! [laughter] You’re this crazy guy.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationIf many wealthy Australians have dropped the philanthropic ball there are still some among the super rich, like Greg Poche, who take giving very seriously.

Greg PocheI wanted to do some things, ah having been successful in business.

To get there, he took on and beat, the price fixing transport cartels of Mayne Nicholas and TNT.

Professor Allan Fels, Trade Practices CommissionWe’ve never seen such blatant defiance of the law and massive ripping off Australian customers as has happened in this cartel.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationIn 2003 Greg sold his company for three quarters of a billion dollars!

From small beginnings Greg ended up at number 31 on Australia’s richest 200 list. But it was his huge gift establishing a purpose built melanoma unit that put him at the forefront of philanthropy.

ABC News 2005It was a 32 million dollar gift deserving of a standing ovation the low profile donor Greg Poche clearly overcome by the recognition.

Tony Abbot I hope your example is noted by the Packers, the Lowe and the Pratt’s of this world because you have set a new standard for generosity in his country.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationGreg’s 32 million was one of the largest single purpose bequests by a living Australian.

Greg PocheThere’s a terrific opportunity for entrepreneurs to invest in this area.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationThere’s a story behind every headline and Greg Poche’s is no exception.

Greg PocheI find it hard to cut

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationGreg’s story started with his old mate Reg Richardson; a retired property developer.

Greg PocheWe’ve been friends now for 40 years.

Reg Richardson40 years, yes.

Greg PocheSo we were both fired by, the same company.

b> Reg Richardson Which gave us a terrific bond, yeah!

Greg PocheWhich we’re very proud of by the way!

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationGreg has a lot of rich friends who he shamelessly uses to raise money for charity.

Reg RichardsonI know a lot of people cause I’ve been around for a long time and eh I sort of suss them out – they wouldn’t know that. Ah I’m good-humoured. You have to make them like you a little otherwise they’ll never give you a cent ah and I just have a crack.

Greg PocheI think, I think Reg is a very dedicated um fundraiser for really good causes, and ah he certainly got me onboard and I’m so glad.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationReg Richardson is a committed catholic with three great passions: art, philanthropy and footie. . Even his spectacles are the colours of his beloved South Sydney Rabitoh’s.

Reg RichardsonNow because I raise money for charity I am told by the marketing people, “never lose your red and green glasses, Reg. You are now branded.”

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationReg grew up poor, left school at 15 and, along with wife sally, went on to make their fortune from property development and other business ventures.

They now own one of Australia’s largest private art collections - 800 works.

Along with picking fine art they also pick rich candidates who might give to good causes.

Reg RichardsonI actually sit down at night with Sally and say “this is what I want to do, who do you think we can ask?” And Sally’s really good at saying “what about so and so you met there, what about so and so you met over in Clontarf the other day. He looked pretty wealthy” and you know we put a list down. I mean I get a list over the evening of about a dozen and I’ll give them all a crack ah and that’s how, we’re a bit of a team like that ah Sally’s good at thinking up the names and I’m not too bad at the ask.

Reg RichardsonReg one of the things I have done is make Greg the superstar of philanthropy.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationReg’s “big asks” have enabled him to source over 400 works of art for St Vincent’s public hospital.He’s also raised over 85 million dollars for charity! an outstanding achievement but no match arguably, for the funds that could be raised if the wealthy gave more.

Daniel PetreI get quite angry about it and quite energised because you know for every day that goes past that some guys haven’t allocated money, some kids die, some kid in Africa has died of hunger or didn’t get a malaria shot, some indigenous kid didn’t get breakfast at school, so it’s meaningful. It’s not like this sort of just funny money going round on a Monopoly board. For every day that money doesn’t pour into the not for profit sector, real people suffer.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationA scholarship program underway at Sydney University’s medical school is an example of philanthropy working for the public good.

Sydney University TeacherSmoke free mummy was and education and support program on Thursday Island.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationThese students are working health professionals who’ve been selected from their mostly rural communities, to do a one year graduate diploma in indigenous health.

Sydney University TeacherI came up with a health priority issue so I went for Smoking during pregnancy.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationThe students are about to have a surprise visit from a private donor who’s put up 10 million dollars for research and development into indigenous health. Geraldine Doogue, NarrationAnd the donar is?

Reg RichardsonI brought Greg Poach with me. As you probably know he is the founder of the Poach Centre here at Sydney University. He gave them 10 million dollars to set up that centre, which is fantastic. We’re really really involved in it.

And it was a nice story how he gave them a cheque. We were driving down City Road trying to find a parking spot. We found one. Got out of his little car and I said: Greg have you got the cheque? He said, oh yeah he got it. And then he said I haven’t drawn it yet. So he wrote Sydney University 10 million dollars and then a big gust of wind came up and blew it down the road. Greg and I, two 70 year olds are running down City Road chasing this cheque for $10 million. It’s the only time he’s ever outsprinted me. How good was that?

And then afterwards he gave the same amount to Flinders University in Adelaide. And last year 14 indigenous students started to study Year 1 medicine. How good is that? Makes you feel good.(Clapping)

Greg PocheAnd I’d like to say I congratulate you for what you’re doing.. well 40 of our can make a huge difference and I take my hat off to you. Even though I don’t have a hat. (CLAPPING)

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationReg also donates generously to indigenous health so what drives these men to be such committed philanthropists?

Reg Richardson, PhilanthropistWell, in my case it’s ah in the main my wife says that she has never been seen me so happy ever ah in the words of a Harry Chapin song – her words, not mine – “you finally like yourself” and I thought that’s a pretty nice and touching thing to say.

Greg Poche, PhilanthropistI just want to want these programmes to roll ahead and for some, some good things to come out of them. That’s-that’s enough for me.

StudentI think people like you like donating money to the causes and for us to study to its just wonderful.

Greg PocheIt’s great that there’s such an effort being made by the students

Reg RichardsonA young man came up and spoke to both of us and, and he said “why are you two guys doing ah what you’re doing for my people?” And I said because if we were your people, if we, if Greg and I were indigenous we’d be dead. That’s why we’re doing it because it’s unfair, unjust and shouldn’t happen. He said “thank you brother.” It’s pretty nice isn’t it?

Teacher, Sydney UniversityHow are we going to address the smoking?

Daniel Petre, Businessman & philanthropistThere are always going to be gaps between what charities can do and governments can do, and yet there are all these needs, whether it’s indigenous education or cancer research or dire hunger in Africa.

If it’s not us, th-the wealthier ones, who? Who does it? If we, if we the wealthy of the world step back and go “no, not us, no, can’t be bothered,” who does it? Nobody does it, and so kids die, cancer doesn’t get solved, um even you know, galleries don’t get filled with art it doesn’t happen. And so I, I get quite agitated about the sense that there are these wealthy people with piles of money, where some of that money is not helping their life at all.

So it’s not like I’m asking them to change their life and go from driving a Lamborghini to driving, you know, an old 1963 Corolla. No, they can keep the Lamborghini. It’s not affecting your life. Just give some of it away to a cause you care about. Not- don’t give it to my causes, you find one. And they still reject that that concept.

Deanne Weir, Businesswoman & philanthropistYes I just wanted to talk to you about the documentary.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationDeanne Weir, a lawyer, is an oasis in the Australian philanthropic dessert.

She got an unexpected windfall in 2010 when Foxtel bought out Austar - the company she was working for.

Deanne and her husband immediately invested some of her cashed out shares in a philanthropic foundation.

Deanne WeirUm well, look we contributed $2 ˝ million into to set up the foundation um and ah we’ve yes, in year one we’ve um donated I think um over $300 000 of that and um we’ll probably do some more before the year’s out.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationDeanne’s foundation supports the arts and education with a special focus on women’s causes.

Deanne WeirKristi “so Deanne this is the woman and girls emergency centre.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationPart of her three hundred thousand dollars worth of donations went to this Sydney refuge.

Refuge worker“If you come through”.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationToday she is visiting for the first time, to see how her money is being spent.

Refuge worker“This is Virginia. Hi nice to meet you.

Geraldine Doogue, Narration47 year old single mother Virginia came to the refuge, after sleeping in a friend’s car for 18 months.

Deanne Weir“Do you mind if I ask in terms of your circumstances, was it losing a job?”

Virginia “I’ve had chronic pain migraines for 25 years. And bringing up my son by myself and creating my own business while all of that was going in on. And then I unfortunately I met and got into a bad situation and now I’m not coping like I once was.

Deanne WeirWell, you know it its very humbling. Here is clearly a very intelligent um articulate, um lovely women who could be your sister, or your cousin, um the lady down the street, who has faced these issues, um you know due to circumstance an-and illness and as a community there’s got to be an answer to that. Th- an-and it has to be an answer beyond her sleeping in a friend’s car.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationDeanne recognises her role is not to work in the refuge, but use her wealth to help keep it going.

She sees philanthropy as an investment with genuine returns.

Deanne WeirAid targeted at women and girls is almost twice as impactful as aid targeted more generally um because you know women essentially end up spending around 90% of their income on their family and their community because it’s more inherent in what they do.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationTargeted philanthropy where the rich avoid red tape and use their business acumen can produce real change.

Dr AlexHi Daniel, thanks for coming in.

Daniel PetreNo, thank you. So movement from the blood pathology tissue to molecular

Daniel PetreThat’s a very aggressive one is itYes it occurs in younger women and we know.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationIn 2011 they had a significant breakthrough identifying a way to shrink tumours and prevent breast cancer cells from spreading.

Daniel PetreAnd so the drugs that are being developed to treat breast cancer can potentially now be used to treat pancreatic cancers.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationBut had Daniel not used his business know how

Dr That’s a great question.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationHis two million dollar donation might have been wasted.

Daniel Petre, Businessman & philanthropistI decided to look at breast cancer research in Australia. And what I found sadly was that a lot of breast cancer research in Australia shouldn’t be funded, they shouldn't be given oxygen. It’s not that they’re bad people; they’re good people, but they’re not, they’re not doing research that’s moving the dial. And I-I-it should be part of the process of giving is working out whether this person or organisation you’re gonna fund has a chance of moving the dial.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationAs well as funding breast and prostate cancer research, Daniel’s Petrie foundation also hired Swinburne and Queensland universities to investigate why Australia’s wealthy give so little: - their research produced some disturbing results.

Daniel PetreI was horrified and shocked to find no, there was no-one gave. Very few people gave money. If you looked at the top list of our top philanthropists from philanthropy Australia, they’re all dead guys. They’re all people w-with estates, either corporate estates or dead people estates, not our, not our living. It was, it was terrible.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationDaniel points out that while other western wealthy pay what he sees as their dues - donating around ten percent of their net wealth -well heeled Australians average less than 2 %.

Daniel PetreIt’s beyond greed. It’s beyond greed. I-it shows a completely corrupt value system. And people, they love to step around this quietly, “oh you know, charities waste money and Fred, he worked for his money, and all this.” No. If you know Fred’s got $100 million, he can give 20 of that into a foundation that can ah give to causes he wants. If he doesn’t, he is morally bankrupt, he does not take the responsibility of the society that he lives in. He takes all the benefits of the society, the financial systems that ensure that people pay their taxes and that people pay the invoices that he’s issued, that he doesn’t get stabbed on the street, etcetera etcetera. He’ll take all the benefits from that and giving nothing back – he’s morally bankrupt.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationSo why are our wealthy such reluctant givers? It’s said there are two certainties in life: death and taxes – but for wealthy Australians there’s a loophole.In Britain if you die rich, you pay tax on your wealth, unless you’ve bequeathed some of it to a charity.if you’ve given some of it away before you die you can also avoid punitive death taxes. It’s similar in the USA - but Australia abolished death duties over 30 years ago and Daniel Petrie believes that put’s philanthropy off our agenda.

Daniel PetreHaving death taxes changes the culture “and we don’t have that here we don’t have estate taxes which sort of force you to do the practical ah decision of “well I’ll give it away before the government takes it,” and there’s no social pressure on on you to give.

So my proposal is that we have an estate tax of 20 percent on wealth over $30 million. And you have two choices. If you decide not to allocate 20 percent of your wealth to your own foundation which then gives to whoever you want to give, on your death 20 percent of your wealth will be taken and put into an Australian philanthropic foundation. It won’t go into government consolidated revenue.So in no way does the tax end up in the government’s hands, which I think is important, and it only- you only get taxed if you have chosen not to give.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationDaniel’s tax could raise 4 billion dollars a year.But with no tax, it could mean Australian philanthropy could be destined to depend on a few kind men and women.

Armando Percuoco, RestaurateurDo you want me?

Greg PocheWe always want you.

Armando PercuocoOh alright thankyou.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationToday Greg and Reg, along with wives Kay and Sally, are meeting for a working lunch . . . To arrange a charity fund raiser for melanoma research.

Greg PocheWhat what what I would suggest is we’ll have a five star event with five top restaurateur chefs and call it a five star event.

Reg RichardsonAnd we can make a couple hundred thousand dollars out of that, you’d think, wouldn’t you?

Armando PercuocoAh if we can organise everything. With the Starlight Foundation we always done half a million dollars a night.

Reg RichardsonYou’ve got my sort of numbers there.

Armando PercuocoSome nice artists, to to give us some ??

Greg PocheDon’t get him too excited!

Armando PercuocoI think we could organise something

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationIt looks like melanoma research could get a half million dollar boost it wouldn’t have otherwise had.

Armando PercuocoI just wanna be behind everybody and look after you.

Sally RichardsonI mean that that was a big ask.

Reg RichardsonHow good was that?

Sally RichardsonHe’s such a nice man, Armando.

Reg RichardsonNot me, no, Armando!

Greg PocheHe’s a great man, Armando.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationAnd the working lunch didn’t stop there.

Reg RichardsonThis is how we rock and roll. I call it good. I call it bloody good.

Geraldine Doogue, NarrationAfter we turned off our cameras reg had a private conversation with Greg: the result? Greg pledged another 30 million dollars to indigenous health, bringing his total philanthropic donations to a staggering $105 million and placing the Poche family among Australia’s most gernerous philanthropists.

Kay PocheThere is nothing um extraordinary about either Greg or myself and in this regard; it’s simply that we we believe in this.

Greg PocheAnd you know, you’ve got to give something back, haven’t you? You really have to. Ah it would be a tragedy to live a pri-privileged wealthy life without doing something good for other people. That really would be. So here we are. Cheers.